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Boston
Geography The capital city of Boston covers a total area of about 232.1 square kilometre. It includes a land area of about 41.2 square kilometres. The area covered by water is nearly 106.7 square kilometres. The geographical coordinates of Boston are 42.358N and 71.06W. The city of Boston is located on the Shawmut Peninsula, located in the confluence of the two rivers Charles and Mystic Rivers. The hilly peninsula of Shawmut is entirely isolated from the mainland by marshy swamps. Boston is a planned and a compact city with an altitude of 5.8 meters above the sea level. Bellevue Hill, the highest point in the city is 101 meters above the sea level. Boston geography would remain incomplete without examining the suburbs of Boston, which includes the cities and towns of Winthrop, Everett, Somerville, Brookline, Needham, Canton, Milton and Quincy. Greater Boston is the name given to Boston and its suburbs. The Back Bay and the South End neighbourhood of Boston are built on reclaimed land. The hills were levelled to fill in the marshlands. History The first English immigrant to settle in Boston was Reverend William Blackstone. He came in 1629, to a peninsula by a stream, called by the local Algonquin inhabitants, Shawmet. A year later, John Winthrop and his Puritan settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, arrived to the north in Salem. Finding Salem less than desirable for a settlement, Blackstone invited Winthrop to visit Shawmut. On September 17, 1630, Winthrop decided to make Shawmut a permanent settlement and named it Boston, after his hometown in Lincolnshire England. Winthrop and his group left England to escape religious harassment and to found a pious Puritan state. Ironically, Blackstone shortly left the colony due the cruel, intolerant society that the Puritans had created. Citizenship in Massachusetts was restricted to church members until 1664. Over the next two centuries Boston developed as a centre for Puritan life. Early on, Boston began to become known as an intellectual and educational centre with the arrival of noted theologians and statesmen, and the founding of Boston Latin School and Harvard University. The first printing press in the colonies was built in Cambridge by Stephen Daye in 1639. The growth of the Boston area continued in the 18th century. As settlements grew into towns around the city, overseas trade increased, and mills were built along the rivers for logging, the forging of iron, and processing wool. Fishermen and farmers thrived as well. Separated by a great geographical distance, the American colonies were still loyal British subjects. This began to change in the 1730's when the Crown increased taxes on the colonists to help replenish the treasury. Boston became a leading centre of colonial resistance as a great philosophical distance began to grow between the Colonies and Britain. The seeds of revolution were planted. The Stamp Act of 1765, the Townshend Acts of 1767, led to the Boston Massacre in 1770. The Tea Act of 1773 resulted with The Boston Tea Party. The British responded to the defiant acts by closing the ports and bringing in more troops to contain the dissidents. On the evening of April 18, 1775, the British dispatched troops to the towns of Lexington and Concord to arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock, and to seize arms which the colonists were storing. Paul Revere and William Dawes rode through the night to warn the colonists of the approaching soldiers. The next morning, on Lexington Green, "the shot heard round the world" was fired, and the American Revolution began. Two months later after the Battle of Bunker Hill, George Washington was summoned to Boston to take command of the rebel army. Massachusetts prospered in the early 19th century with improved roads, new canals, and the construction of railways, linking cities and towns. Labourers were recruited locally, but by the 1840's there were not enough locals to fill the work force. The answer came with the arrival of the first non-English immigrants, from Ireland. The Civil War was a profitable time for Boston manufacturers, with the production of weapons, shoes, blankets, and other materials for the troops. Boston also played a role as a leading voice of the abolitionist movement. The late 19th century was Boston's greatest industrial era. As millions of immigrants from around the world came to America, Boston continued as a leading manufacturer of a wide variety of goods and products. Boston's manufacturing went into a state of decline during the first decade of the 20th century. The once thriving factories and mills had become old and obsolete. The tenements were aging and decaying. Many businesses closed and relocated to the south. Prosperity continued in the Hub however with the development of service industries, banking and finance, and retailing and wholesaling. Boston suffered with the rest of the nation during the Great Depression. With the outbreak of War II, factories were retooled for the war effort, and people went back to work on the production lines. Again Boston was a major arms manufacturer during wartime. By the 1950's, fishing and farming were in decline in Massachusetts, but the Boston area emerged as a leader in the fledgling computer and high-tech industries. Nowadays, the Boston skyline is brimming with skyscrapers and office towers; a testament to Boston's achievements and its vitality. Boston is still developing in the new millennium. There are always new places and magnificent achievements in the city. Boston is a city with a rich past, but it is also a city looking ahead to tomorrow. Architecture Buildings in Boston represent four main architectural styles. The first one is the colonial, where buildings from the period of the first settlers belong to. A notable edifice from the early 18th century is the Old North Church, which was originally an Anglican church, but today it hosts an Episcopalian congregation. The church has a 175 feet high steeple, which houses eight bells, which are the oldest church bells in America and toll still today. The steeple was even perpetuated in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, "The midnight ride of Paul Revere." The King’s Chapel, the Old State House, Paul Revere’s House and the Old South Meeting House were also built in the contemporary English architectural style, and still preserve 18th century England’s atmosphere. The second period in Boston’s architectural history was the federal era, when the English culture still had a great influence on the newly formed United States. However, the buildings from the late 18th and 19th centuries signal the efforts that made possible the city’s own development. The Quincy Market was the first corner stone in Boston’s growth into a metropolis. Built on the ocean’s edge, it determines the city’s landscape, as well as the Faneuil Hall, the Somerset Club and Massachusetts’ State House. The Victorian era was the third in Boston’s architecture. The emphasis was on building public buildings, as the civic consciousness grew in line with the industrial development. The city’s first skyscraper was built in this period, the sixteen floor Customs Tower. As part of the Custom House, it was originally built to assist inspection and registration of cargo. The Trinity Church symbolizes the city’s break up with its Puritan past, and its first steps on the path of American creativity and ingenuity. A heritage of the Industrial Revolution is the building of Chadwick lead Works, which demands respect with its terra-cotta ornamentation. The Victorian period celebrated also the birth of the Boston Public Library, International Trust Company building and Flour and Grain Exchange building too. The 20th century also saw the emergence of new stylish buildings, including the Boston City Hall, John Hancock Tower, Prudential Center Complex and MIT Chapel, among others. The Boston City Hall was constructed in New Brutalist style, advertising massive forms from concrete; however, recently it has been voted the ugliest building in Boston on an internet voting. The sixty floors of the John Hancock Insurance building dominate its surroundings, and it also has a weather beacon on the top to signal the approaching weather. The Prudential Center Complex was Boston’s tallest building for 15 years, which gives home to Top of the Hub restaurant with the city’s best restaurant view. Sources: http://www.iboston.org/mcp.php?pid=arch People Over the thirty years between 1950 and 1980 Boston’s population declined from 801,444 to562, 994. This decline can largely be attributed to families with children fleeing to the suburbs based on a perception of better schools and less crime. Since 1980, however, the City’s population has stabilized and grown slightly. The 2000 U.S. Census records the City’s population at 589,141,representing a 2.6% increase over the 1990population and a 4.6% increase over 1980. In2007, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the City’s population exceeded 599,000 residents. A wide range of ethnic backgrounds and countries of origin can be found in Boston’s population. The most recent census results confirm that people off-colour now make up the majority of Boston’s population for the first time in its history. Boston’s rich cultural heritage is also reflected in the diversity of its neighbourhoods. In recognition of the fact that many of the people who move to Boston each year come from different cultural backgrounds and have a first language other than English, the Mayor has created the Office of New Bostonians. The mission of this office is to strengthen the ability of residents from diverse cultural and linguistic communities to playa active role in the economic, civic, social, and cultural life of the City of Boston. "Day-long population" With a resident population of .just over 574,000, Boston ranks as the 20th largest city in the United States. Importance and vitality emerges ever day when Boston's "day-long population" doubles to nearly1.2 million people. In addition to being one of the few major cities that generates more jobs than it has residents, Boston attracts hundreds 'of thousands of additional visitors who come into the city to shop, go to school, receive health care, visit historic sites or attend cultural or sporting events. On days when special events are held in Boston, like the annual Boston Marathon, Fourth of July Esplanade Celebration, or Head of the Charles Regatta, the city's population can even approach 2 million people. Demographic data '''Boston City, Massachusetts Statistics and Demographics (US Census 2000) ''' Education Boston offers a great variety of educational opportunities on all levels. The city’s school district is among the 60 largest in the country. As the city council spends nearly 30% of the total budget on education, the reason for the high quality education is obvious. As for the elementary and middle schools, the number of total enrollment reaches 58,310 and the student-teacher ratio is 13:1. Besides the wide choice of public schools, Boston has several prestigious private schools as well, such as the Commonwealth School famous for its language and humanities teaching or the Boston University’s Academy, which provides an insight to high school students into academic life. Moreover, Boston is probably the most famous for its tertiary education. More than 35 colleges and universities can be found in the area, which means that a significant proportion of the population is involved in higher education. As far as the number of graduations is concerned, Boston keeps the leading position in many fields including Engineering, Computer Sciences, Business Management and Medicine. In addition, the city offers scientific areas that cannot be studied anywhere else in the US, such as Labor Sciences, Biobehavioral Studies and East Asian Studies. Interestingly enough, Boston is among the few cities where there are more students in private schools than in public institutions. Probably the best-known private universities are Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of technology. Besides these the city’s higher education guarantees a rich range of subjects. The main fields of interest are: One of the main reasons for the higher number of students in private school is the fact that in many cases private ones cost less than their public counterparts. It means that though the tuition fee to a private school can be around $15,000 per semester, students can get more subsidies from the university itself ($2000-$5000 per semester). In consequence, this made possible to enroll in higher education for students from families with limited income. On the top of all, grants and scholarship programs also provide financial aid for college students. CommonWealth Future Grants, Foster Child Grant, Massachusetts Cash grant are just a few among the others. Furthermore, students can put their theoretical studies into practice through several internship programs. There are many opportunities for computer science students, future journalists and also sportsmen, just to mention some. The correspondence of tertiary institutions and companies is well demonstrated in the fact that over one-third of graduates find a full-time job in the area. The largest number of workers is employed in the medical sector, which is followed by higher education, financial services and high technology. All in all, Boston is the paradise of college students with endless possibilities waiting to be exploited. Important links: ::::::::: [http://www.boston.com/news/education/ http://www.bostoneducation.org ] ::::::::: http://www.boston.com/news/education/ Economy The nature of Boston’s economic base has changed dramatically over the past three decades. In 1970, manufacturing and trade jobs accounted for 33% of the total economy, while financial and service sector jobs totalled 38%. In 2000, manufacturing and trade jobs accounted for only 16% of the total economy while financial and service sector jobs reached 62%. These trends mirror a national movement from an industrial-based economy to a service-based one. The City’s resident workforce is undergoing a transformation as well. Of the 266,505 Boston residents working in 1970, 45% held blue-collar jobs and 55% held white-collar jobs. In 2000, of the285,859 Boston residents working, those holding blue-collar jobs fell to 31%, and those employed in white-collar occupations rose to 69% (Table 1).The majority of these white-collar jobs are within finance, health care, education, and other broad based service industries. The changing needs of a service and information based economy have increased the demand for abetter educated and more highly skilled workforce. In 2000, 79% of the adults in Boston had completed high school, compared to 53% in1970. A full 36% of adults in Boston had completed college in 2000, compared to only 10% in 1970.- '''Economic Outlook''' The City of Boston has shared in the nation’s economic turns. During the 1960s, the economy thrived and unemployment was consistently below6%. In the 1970s, Boston experienced the same pain felt across the country as a national recession took hold. The 1980s produced the” Massachusetts Miracle” and launched a Massachusetts Governor’s bid for the presidency. The early 1990s gave way to recession again with unemployment over 8% and a collapsing real-estate market. The late nineties expansion led to low unemployment, commercial development and increased home values throughout the City and the region. Currently, the City is heading into an economic downturn that is affecting the nation, region, and state. http://www.cityofboston.gov/TridionImages/10%20Boston%27s%20People%20and%20Economy_tcm1-3161.pdf Largest employers There are 43 private sector companies within the city of Boston that employ over 1,000 people each. The four largest industries among these employers, in terms of employment, are: health care, financial services, insurance, and higher education. The 43 largest private employers in Boston account for nearly 132,000 jobs or about 21% of the total employment in the city. The health care industry, and hospitals in particular, employ far more people than any other sector in Boston. With 11,415 employees, Massachusetts GeneralHospitalis Boston’s largest private employer. Two manufacturers also make the list: Gillette and Teradyne. 40% of the employees at Boston’s largest companies are also Boston residents. 51% of the employees at Boston’s largest companies have at least a four year college degree and another 18% have some college education. Nearly one in four jobs is a part-time position. The slight tendency for Boston residents to be employed more on a part-time basis when compared to non-residents disappears when companies which hire more part than full-time workers are removed. Millionaires Massachusettshas always had more than its fair share of millionaires. It's been that way for two centuries, ever since Salem's Elias Hasket Derby's profits from the China trade made him America's first. Today nearly one in 20 families here is worth at least $1 million. That's more per capita than in Los Angeles, Chicago, even New York City. In Weston, the ratio is one in four. And they're getting richer. Over the past two decades the wealthiest households in this state have seen their incomes rise five times faster than the poorest and twice as fast as those in the middle class. Not everybody at the top has fared so well since we last produced this list. David Wetherell of CMGI, for example, saw his stake in the company plummet from $2.1 billion to $100 million in less than a year. Others took their green to greener pastures. Viacom's Sumner Redstone, now worth $8.4 billion, moved to Beverly Hills. Casino baron Sheldon Adelson, who once drove his purple Rolls-Royce home to Newton, took his $15.6 billion to Las Vegas, where he owns the Venetian. Buyout king Thomas Lee ($1.2 billion) made like Johnny Damon and split for New York. But most of our entrepreneurs endure—and profit. There clearly are still fortunes to be made in such necessities as real estate and healthcare. Unlike the virtual billionaires, titans of manufacturing continue to prosper. Money managers who help the rich get richer are doing pretty well themselves. More than ever, the people on this year's list accumulated their fortunes by making products or deals bigger, faster, riskier, and smarter than their rivals—not, as used to be the case here, by inheriting their money. Experts say another 30,000 households will hit the $1 million mark in Boston in the next four years. We'll be keeping score. How we compiled the list. ''By Francis Storrs'' Wealth Sports life Boston is the home of various sporting facilities for both spectators and competitors. Those who like winter sports, the city offers several outdoor places where you can relax with a steaming hot chocolate in your hands. In the heart of the city the Boston Common Frog Pond Skating, Kendall Square Skating Rink and Charles Hotel rink in Harvard Square welcome the lovers of ice-skating. Skiers can enjoy the nearby slopes of Wachusett Mountain Ski Area and the Blue Hills Ski Area where guided tours can also be resorted. Those who fancy water sports can practice their passion on the Charles River, where canoes and kayaks can be rented. Individual and guided tours are both available. A variety of small-boat and kayak types can be rented in Boston, Cambridge, Newton and Natick. Moreover, amateur and professional sailors can also try their skills in the Courageous Sailing Center, which starts boats from the marvelous Boston Harbor. The center organizes courses for adults and free programs for children as well. Courageous also makes free opportunities for people with disability, autism, blindness and diabetes, who usually find themselves barred from such activities. The continuously expanding opportunities aim to give these people physical, psychological and spiritual aid. Furthermore, Boston Sport Fishing provides fishing charters from the Boston Harbor. Golf-lovers also find their place in the city. Pinehills Golf Club and Stow Acres Country Club both offer excellent golf courses with a pleasant atmosphere and good company. Boston also excels in professional sports. The city has several major league sports team, the Celtics basketball team and the Red Sox baseball team and the Boston Bruins hockey team, among others. The persistent rivals of the Yankees, the Red Sox gives an unforgettable experience. The 2004 and 2007 World Series Champs amaze every spectator in the Fenway Park with their extraordinary games. The green-colored team of Celtics has won the World Championship 17 times. If you would like to visit an American basketball game to the core, come to the TD Garden for a life-time experience. The fully-equipped arena hosts more than 200 public events annually, including hockey, basketball games, ice-skating, gymnastics championships and record-breaking concerts. The Garden is suitable to host more than 19,000 people, which makes obvious the fact why it is the most popular sports center in the entire New England. For more information on the schedule of games and on the team visit the official websites: http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/ Transportation As in every great metropolitan area, the transportation of Boston is great and fast. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority operates Boston’s circulation, which is the country’s fifth largest mass transit system. Altogether MBTA serves 175 cities and towns, including the capital. The organization runs 183 bus routes, 3 rapid transit lines, 13 commuter rail routes, 5 streetcar lines and 4 trolley lines. In the capital, you can use the elaborated subway, commuter rail, bus or even boat systems. There are 5 subway lines in the city, which run in all directions and there are several direct changing possibilities. Moreover, MBTA has been carrying out T-Projects to make traffic in Boston more up-to-date, economic and environmentally sound. The authority restores stations all around the capital’s area, modernizes the ticket collection system and the vehicles, and aspires to make all stations accessible for disabled people as well. As far as fares are concerned, the city has worked out a so-called Charlie Card system, which serves the passengers’ convenience. This card frees you from standing in long lines for the tickets, because you can reload your card through the online service. In addition, this card also offers reduced fares to students, pensioners and disabled people. Additionally, a very appealing feature of Boston’s transportation is that anyone can report complaints about the quality of roads or the service on the official website of the city of Boston. You can report a pothole, street light outage, damaged street signs, traffic signal problem, or a walk light problem online, and you can even pay your parking violation on the same website. Basically, this website makes possible to register all kind of administrative things by a few clicks. For further information check this link: http://www.cityofboston.gov/transportation/ '''Getting to Boston''' The city of Boston can be approached by all vehicles. National bus companies run lines with stops in the downtown of Boston. Scheduled services can be used from New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Connecticut – to name a few. Amtrak operates also scheduled train service from New York, which takes 3 and a half hours on express or 4 hours on other trains. By car, 3 main routes run into Boston: I-90 from the west, I-95 from the north and south and I-93 also from the north and south. The city has an airport in East Boston, which welcome both national and international flights. There are direct flights to Logan Airport from the major US cities as well as from main European cities, such as Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Munich, London, Paris, Milan and Zurich. For the map of the full system click on this link: http://www.mbta.com/schedules_and_maps/system_map/ Nightlife As ten thousands of college students live their everyday life in Boston, the city’s nightlife is extremely colorful and vivid. Everyone can find the most suitable form of entertainment to him in Boston. The city offers a wide spectrum of bars and nightlife pleasure-grounds, from Irish pubs, through sports bars, dance clubs to jazz clubs. Due to the large number of young people, nightclubs are the most popular. Bachelor parties, bachelorette parties, single nights and birthday parties are organized almost every day all around the city’s nightclubs. Moreover, people in Boston usually don’t content themselves with only one bar a night, they prefer Party Bus Tours! Different fun theme style buses offer “Hub Crawler” cruises in the hottest nightclubs, bars and Irish pubs. The advantages of these tours are that you can avoid the big cover charges and waiting in the endless queues. Furthermore, on the way to one club to another the party doesn’t stop on board either. Beautiful hosts and great DJs assure the good atmosphere on the buses. Buses can be rented for bachelor, bachelorette parties, and anniversaries or just for a fun tour around the city’s best places. Besides the wild nightclubs you can spend a romantic and sophisticated night in Boston as well. Whether you want a refreshing tea, something to snack, a brunch on Sunday or a delicious dinner, you will find excellent dining places in Boston. The most stylish restaurants serve the latest trends in European, American and Far-Eastern cuisines, such as the Splash Restaurant & Lounge, Bond Restaurant and Todd English. However, hungry Bostonians can also choose from a variety of inexpensive restaurants, which serve all types of food from all over the world. These dining places are very popular among college students. Barbecue, hamburger places, Italian, Colombian, Turkish, Hungarian, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Vietnamese, Chinese, Indian, Thai and sandwich restaurants compete with each other to satisfy the diverse needs of Boston’s hungry population. Dining facilities in Boston suit all kind of purses, from the cheap, through moderately expensive to posh restaurants. Finally, an interesting spot in Boston’s nightlife is the Irish pubs and restaurants. Owing to the Great Famine in Ireland in 1845-49, millions of Irish moved to the United States, many of whom targeted Boston as their new chance for a better future. The significant Irish community managed to keep alive their culture and traditions, and as a result, Irish pubs and dining places became the central meeting places to watch Irish soccer over a glass of Irish whiskey. Irish stew and Tipsy puddings are served everywhere in Boston along with the famous malt whiskey. Here are the links to the best restaurants and nightclubs in Boston: http://sophisticatednightlife.com/ http://www.bostonirishpubs.com/ http://www.hiddenboston.com/ http://www.bostonnightclubnews.com/ What to do If you are interested in history, here is a list of sites which you should not miss in Boston: # The '''Freedom Trail''' offers a great opportunity to explore the city’s history on your own. You need only a pair of comfortable shoes and you can start the 2, 5 miles’ long route. The red-brick covered trail leads you to 16 historic sights, starting from the Boston Common, through the Old North Church to the narrowest house in Boston. You can go along the path alone or join an organized tour. #The '''Harvard University''' is the oldest tertiary institution of the country, which accepts visitors, who are eager to imbibe the milieu of this magic place. Guided tours are available every day except Sunday. #For the patriots, '''John F. Kennedy’s Birthplace''' is an important stop in their pilgrimage, where you can see where young Kennedy spent his early childhood and also the neighborhood where he grew up. #The '''Omni Parker House '''is one of the most prominent hotels of Boston, which has welcomed several outstanding figures throughout its 150 years’ history, such as Alexander Graham Bell, J. F. Kennedy and Charles Dickens. #For those who would like to discover what life was like in the time of early settlers, the '''Salem Maritime Historic Site''' is a perfect place. It includes the Orientation Center, the Custom House, Derby House and the Friendship of Salem ship, which is open for visitors too. As for dining places in Boston, everyone can find the most suitable restaurant to his taste. The city’s restaurant offer is really versatile and colorful, because cultures from all over the world represent their gastronomy in the metropolis. Just for orientation, here are the 5 top restaurants that you should not miss in Boston. #''' Terramia '''(Italian) #'''Fish Market '''(local specialty – lobster) #'''Bistro du Midi '''(French) #'''Fusion Taste''' #'''Taso’s Euro-Café '''(Greek) If you really want to experience what it feels like to be a real Bostonian, go to the most popular events, which range from musical, through sports and cinematic to arts events. Let’s see the 5 most popular ones: #Boston International Film Festival – a great deal of short and feature films are showed to the public, which praise the work of students from the nearby arts schools #Boston Marathon – on the third Monday of April thousands of participants start the 26,2 mile-long running challenge #ECHO Performing Arts Festival – the Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations present the works of art of six Native American artists #Boston Symphony Orchestra – for the lovers of classical music #A Night in Black and White – an elegant evening to raise fund for the development of educational facilities and the support of deserving students For more details on the forthcoming events, check out this link: http://calendar.boston.com/ Current news '''Sports''' '''Carrying them with one arm''' '''Teammates follow the lead of Beckett''' '''By Amalie Benjamin, Globe Staff | March 5, 2010''' FORT MYERS, Fla. - When Josh Beckett walked into the clubhouse yesterday afternoon, hours before he would take the mound for his first game action of the spring, there was a golf club in his hand. Shades down, shorts on, Beckett used the club as a walking stick as he went through a room filled with teammates that look to him as a template for what they should be, what they should do. So in some ways, it wouldn’t be surprising if there are a few more players - not just pitchers - carrying their own clubs into City of Palms Park in the coming days. More than a mentor, more than an ace, Beckett has served as a barometer for the team. As he goes, in many ways, so go the [http://boston.stats.com/mlb/teamstats.asp?teamno=02 Red Sox]. Take, for example, a four-game series in which Beckett starts the first game. He can set a tone, sure. He can come out and dominate and kick things off. Or he can struggle. “Something happens, he gets hit hard, that puts the doubt in everybody’s mind,’’ Clay Buchholz said. “Like, ‘Wow, they hit Josh hard, what are they going to do to me?’ ’’ As Jason Varitek said yesterday, Beckett exudes a “powerful presence.’’ Or, as Buchholz put it, “He carries himself differently than other people. It’s just the aura that’s around Josh Beckett, and then everybody else.’’ And that is unlikely to be any different this season, even as Jon Lester has matured, even as the Sox have signed John Lackey. Beckett remains the soul of the pitching staff and, in some ways, the soul of the team. He cannot carry the Sox in the way that a position player can, can’t go on a hot streak at the plate. Yet that’s how the Sox see Beckett. “We all look to Josh as a guy that carries us,’’ Dustin Pedroia said. “He does that. He goes out every start and attacks, and that’s kind of our team’s mentality. “His role on this team doesn’t change just because we’ve got another ace. He’s still the man. He still goes out there and does what he does. His attitude and the way he carries himself, it’s pretty special.’’ Though “special’’ wasn’t required last night, Beckett made his spring debut in a 2-1 win over the Twins. He threw 27 pitches (19 strikes) in two innings, allowing one run on two hits, with one strikeout. He said he was particularly pleased with his ability to keep the ball down, getting five ground balls, most of which came on four-seam fastballs. He said he has been working on “pounding the bottom of the zone, getting the ball down. A lot of that comes from timing.’’ As Beckett gets in his innings this spring, practicing and perfecting his pitches, he needs little work on his presence. The Sox know what they have in him, and his teammates revel in it. “You guys see a few different sides of him,’’ manager Terry Francona said. “You see that side after he pitches, where he’s dropping [expletives] and you see him in the dugout when he’s beside himself. But he’s solid. He works, he’s accountable, the players love him. So that goes a long way.’’ “That’s definitely something that’s important to me,’’ Beckett said. “I’ve said this before. I don’t think it’s something that you pick out and try to do. It’s just something that’s kind of happened here.’’ It creates the confidence his team has on the nights he pitches. There’s a sense of calm, built from four years of watching him, four years of playing behind him, four years of understanding what it means when Beckett takes the mound. As Buchholz said, “He’s grown to be that person. He has more responsibility than anybody else on the team because he is that person.’’ He may not start the first game of the regular season. But Beckett remains the key in many ways, even with other starters to share his burden. “For us, Josh, he’s the one that likes to go out there with all the weight on his shoulders and beat the best teams and beat the best guys,’’ Buchholz said. “It’s seemed, since I’ve been up the last couple years, that every time that Josh is going well, it seems like everybody else feeds off of him. “That’s what you get whenever you have that label as an ace. He’s our guy.’’ ''Amalie Benjamin can be reached at [mailto:abenjamin@globe.com abenjamin@globe.com]. Follow her on Twitter @amaliebenjamin. '' For more sports news follow this link: http://www.boston.com/sports/?p1=GN_Sports '''Education''' '''School plan draws fire''' '''Teachers to be reassigned''' '''By Edward Mason''' | Friday, March 5, 2010 Boston’s plan to sack five principals and make teachers at six of the city’s worst schools fight for their jobs is coming under fire because most will remain in the system teaching other kids, while their union is predicting “chaos.” The plan, unveiled yesterday afternoon by school chief Carol R. Johnson, is part of a bid for federal funds to overhaul underachieving schools where large numbers of students have performed poorly.Federal rules say no more than 50 percent of teachers can win their old jobs back. But Boston plans to move the rest into other schools, where they’ll continue teach other children. “We’re not moving the chairs around on the deck,” Mayor [http://bostonherald.com/search/?topic=Thomas+M.+Menino Thomas M. Menino] said. He said teachers who aren’t picked to stay at their schools will get mentoring from senior instructors to improve their performance at the schools to which they are reassigned. “We’re giving these teachers opportunities to be mentored to become better teachers,” he said. But one government watchdog wondered whether the city shouldn’t just fire the teachers who don’t make the grade. “It’s penalizing students at other schools by pushing those failed teachers on them,” said David Tuerck, executive director at the Beacon Hill Institute. On Monday, President Obama praised Central Falls, R.I., for axing its entire high school faculty as part of the same school-improvement program: “If a school continues to fail its students year after year after year, if it doesn’t show any sign of improvement, then there’s got to be a sense of accountability,” the president said. Central Falls officials have since agreed to suspend their firing plan as long as union officials cooperate with them to improve the school. In Boston, meanwhile, although union members aren’t being threatened with firing, Boston Teachers Union President Richard Stutman said displacing so many teachers wouldn’t work. “It’s a recipe for chaos,” he said. In all, 12 Boston schools were dubbed underperforming by the state yesterday, based on chronically low MCAS scores. Principals were targeted for firing at the William Blackstone, Paul A. Dever and John F. Kennedy elementary schools; Harbor Middle School; and Orchard Gardens K-8 School. They will be replaced by principals Johnson said have records of straightening out schools. Teachers will have to reapply for their jobs at six schools: Orchard Gardens, Blackstone, Dever, William Trotter, Harbor Middle and Jeremiah E. Burke High. Johnson said as many as 250 teachers at those schools would be affected. Article URL: [http://bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1237366 http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1237366] '''Politics''' '''Senator on thin ice''' '''Watchdog steps into fight over Milton skating rink''' '''By Christine McConville''' | Friday, March 5, 2010 Massachusetts Inspector General Gregory Sullivan is weighing in on a bitter feud that has pitted scores of Milton parents against Brian Joyce, the town’s five-term state senator. The inspector general has asked the state’s Department of Conservation and Recreation to give the town of Milton more time to put together a proposal to run the state-owned Max Ulin Memorial Skating Rink. “The request for proposals does not provide enough time for any local governing body to make an informed decision about whether to submit a proposal to run a rink,” Sullivan’s lawyer told the DCR. He also wants to know why a private college has its own locker room in the facility. For weeks, residents have been in an uproar over state plans to lease the skating rink. Parents say the new managers will bring steeper prices and less ice time. But Joyce, a self-described hockey dad who has pushed for the rink’s privatization for years, disagrees. “I applaud the governor for saving scarce taxpayer dollars while providing parents and their children with better facilities and lower costs,” said Joyce, who lives on the same street as Gov. [http://news.bostonherald.com/search/?topic=Deval+Patrick&searchSite=pubdate Deval Patrick]. People in town aren’t buying it. “What’s in it for Brian?” said Milton Selectman John Shields. “That’s what has everyone in town scratching their heads, because it isn’t fair to the town and it isn’t good for the kids.” Since 2004, Joyce has pushed legislation that would allow private managers to take over state-owned, money-losing rinks. Each time, state representatives blocked his efforts. This time, legislative approval isn’t needed, because the state is soliciting bids for a five-year permit, not a longer-term lease. The new bidding method caught town officials off guard. They learned of the bid submission just days before the deadline. On Monday, Inspector General Sullivan intervened on Milton’s behalf. Sullivan’s office also wants information about the rink’s arrangement with Curry College, a small private school just up the road from the rink. For years, Curry has had its own locker room at the rink, but according to DCR spokeswoman Wendy Fox, the school does not pay rent to the state for the space. Joyce used to teach at Curry and the college’s president, Kenneth Quigley, has been a regular contributor to Joyce’s campaign. Curry spokeswoman Fran Jackson said the school still hasn’t decided if it will bid on managing the rink. Article URL: [http://bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1237383 http://www.bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1237383] Podcasts